1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to the field of alternators as employed to supply D.C. electrical power to automotive vehicles and more specifically to the area of alternator construction in which both the rectifier assembly and the regulator circuitry are provided within the alternator housing.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Much work has been done in the past to increase the heat dissipation efficiencies of rectifier diode assemblies mounted within alternator housings. As part of that work, numerous disclosures have been made for both diode construction and mounting techniques.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,184,625 describes a technique for mounting rectifier diodes on metal plates within the housing of an alternator. The metal plates are shown to provide electrical interconnection to common terminals for each set of diodes. However, numerous wire-to-terminal solder connections are required to interconnect the diodes in the rectifier network.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,539,850, 3,925,809, 3,959,676, 4,218,694 and 4,538,169 all show various techniques for sandwiching diode elements between interconnecting conductors to provide the rectifier network in a manner that will facilitate heat dissipation.